It is said that we measure what we value and that we value what we measure. If the adage holds true, law firms’ emphasis on measurement of billable hours points ultimately to their focus on making a profit. This is hardly surprising.

Heather Douglas’ post Metrics: Beyond the Billable Hour, suggests that law firms should measure more than just billable hours and could make use of the valuable data gleaned or already in their possession. Those are good ideas that could support the profit motivation, but may require a different approach to measurement and data gathering, relying on research methodologies . . . [more]

The Panama papers revelations are worth pondering on many levels. (This Wired article is a good summary.)

My first reaction to the high level tax evasion and corruption allegations was to blanch at the thought that someone had basically given the entire contents of a law firm’s document management system to a third party.

As a lawyer, the fact that law firm files were leaked causes me to wince. After all, solicitor-client privilege is a fundamental tenet of democratic society. Law firms take the security of their files very seriously, and getting access to this information would not be an . . . [more]

Law firms love measuring the billable hour. The current yardstick for worth. But by focusing only on the billable hour, law firms lose. They lose valuable data.

Think about how much data runs through a law firm:

1. What do clients request?
2. When do clients request it?
3. Why are clients asking for that work? When do they need it done? What motivates the request? Is it tied to a specific time of year?
4. How satisfied was the client? What feedback did the client provide?
5. When do clients ask to reduce the bill and by how much?
6. What type of work was

Each Wednesday we tell you which three English-language cases and which French-language case have been the most viewed* on CanLII and we give you a small sense of what the cases are about.

For this last week:

1. Economical Mutual Insurance Company v. Caughy, 2016 ONCA 226

[17] Does parking a vehicle constitute the type of aberrant use contemplated by the Supreme Court in Citadel? In my view, it does not. The examples cited by Binnie J. were limited to circumstances in which a vehicle is not being used as a vehicle but for some other purpose. Parking a . . . [more]

Lindsay Cameron‘s best-selling novel BIGLAW is billed as “The Devil Wears Prada meets One L, BIGLAW provides an insider’s view of the cut-throat world of big New York law firms.”

Most of the partners in the book are bullies. The book is a good read not so much because the characters and the storylines are outrageous but rather because both are credible and familiar. Cameron, a graduate of UBC’s Faculty of Law, was a corporate associate for six years in large law firms in both Canada and the United States. During that time, she no doubt accumulated a . . . [more]

I was a law student in the mid-1970s. At that time, the curriculum in common law Canadian law schools reflected a widespread, if not universal, consensus on the content and scope of the core body of legal doctrine that would prepare students for a career in the legal profession. At my law school, in addition to the common first year subjects – torts, property, contracts, criminal law, legal systems and judicial process and legal writing – we were required to take administrative law, evidence, civil procedure, insurance, constitutional law (division of powers, that is – the Charter was not yet . . . [more]

A panel of three Ontario Divisional Court Judges have held that residential landlords are not permitted to photograph a property while it is occupied by a tenant unless the lease explicitly permits such photographs to be taken, or the landlord obtains the express consent of the tenant.

The Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board ordered a tenant to be evicted when she refused to allow the landlord access to the property for the purpose of photographing it so that it could be listed for sale. The tenant refused on the basis that her privacy would be invaded if photographs of her . . . [more]

Here are excerpts from the most recent tips on SlawTips, the site that each week offers up useful advice, short and to the point, on research and writing, practice, and technology.

Practice

Tackle That (In)Box
Elizabeth Mah

When people ask “How are you doing?” I think most people answer on behalf of their inboxes. “Full”, some might say, or “Crazy” say most as they glance at the notice saying that there are 99,999 email messages in their inbox and then glance at the clock indicating the time remaining in their day. …

Research & Writing

Think of Your Reader . . . [more]

This article is by Cynthia Miller, Unit Director & Counsel at LAWPRO.

Counsel representing clients who seek compensation for injuries caused by another’s negligence or wrongdoing are encouraged to be mindful that the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care may also be entitled to recover its costs for health care and medical treatment provided to the injured party from the tortfeasor. Failure to advance OHIP’s subrogated claim can lead to adverse consequences for both the injured plaintiff and plaintiff ’s counsel.

Accordingly, solicitors are wise to develop a working knowledge of the principle of subrogation, and to implement file management . . . [more]

There have been a number of things written lately about lawyers and technology indicating that this conversation has begun to emerge.

Here are a few selections that have crossed my screen over the last couple of months:

• Bennion, Jeff. 2016. ‘Debunking 3 Legal Technology Myths’. Above the Law. Accessed March 31. http://abovethelaw.com/2016/02/debunking-3-legal-technology-myths/.
  • “Lately, I’ve talked to a lot of people who have some misconceptions about what it means to be a tech-friendly law office.”
• Casanovas, Pompeu, Monica Palmirani, Silvio Peroni, Tom van Engers, and Fabio Vitali. 2016. ‘Semantic Web for the Legal Domain: The next Step’. Edited by Pompeu

Each Monday we present brief excerpts of recent posts from five of Canada’s award­-winning legal blogs chosen at random* from seventy recent Clawbie winners. In this way we hope to promote their work, with their permission, to as wide an audience as possible.

This week the randomly selected blogs are 1. First Reference Talks  2. Pensions & Benefits Law 3. Combat Sports Law  4. SOQUIJ  5. Clio

First Reference Talks
Maciel vs. Fashion Coiffures: pregnancy and employer’s continued obligation under the “Code”

The applicant, Jessica Maciel, was just over four months pregnant when she applied for, and was hired as . . . [more]

If you have ever had the un-enviable job of re-building a corporate intranet you will know where I am coming from. Corporate intranets tend to be a mass repository of just about everything, from everyone that your firm has ever produced. Intranets unintentionally become dumping grounds that are never cleaned up. Of course much of the content was important at some point, so how do you turn a vast wasteland of information into something usable, friendly and fit within your culture? It starts with a rethink.

There are many articles about how to get the project started, approved, launched, etc. . . . [more]